1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a disk changer and more particularly to a disk changer which causes a disk tray with plural disks received therein to rotate up to a predetermined position.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As a conventional disk changer there is known such a disk changer as is disclosed in Japanese Published Unexamined Patent Application No. Hei 4-302848.
In this conventional disk changer, a lever provided at a tip thereof with an upwardly projecting, arcuate, rotation inhibiting piece is disposed in a rotation inhibiting mechanism, while an inner peripheral wall erected downward on a circumference centered on a rotational axis of a disk tray and with cutout portions formed at angular intervals of 90xc2x0 is formed on a back side of the disk tray.
According to this construction, when the disk tray stops at a predetermined rotational position, the rotation inhibiting piece of the lever is moved into any of the cutout portions and is thereby rendered interferable with the above inner peripheral surface to inhibit the rotation of the disk tray.
In the above conventional disk changer, if the disk tray stops beyond or before the predetermined rotational position, it is impossible to let any of the cutout portions confront the rotation inhibiting piece, so that the rotation inhibiting piece cannot be moved into any of the cutout portions and hence it is impossible to inhibit the rotation of the disk tray.
The present invention has been accomplished in view of the above-mentioned problem and it is an object of the invention to provide a disk changer which can be sure to inhibit the rotation of a disk tray.
According to the present invention, for achieving the above-mentioned object, there is provided a disk changer comprising:
a slide tray with a support shaft erected on an upper surface thereof, the slide tray being installed so that it can be drawn out from a cabinet body;
a disk tray having on an upper surface thereof a plurality of disk receptacle portions which can receive disks therein, the disk tray having on a lower surface thereof an engaging groove which has wedge-like slant faces radially, the disk tray having an axis at which it is supported rotatably by the support shaft of the slide tray;
a chuck arm having one end mounted to an upper end of the support shaft of the slide tray and having on an opposite end side thereof a first chucking portion which can confront each of the disk receptacle portions from above;
a drive unit for rotating the disk tray;
a position sensor for detecting a rotational position of the disk tray;
a mechanical holder which carries thereon a second chucking portion and a pickup both able to confront each of the disk receptacle portions from below, the mechanical holder being able to let the second chucking portion and the pickup move toward and away from each of the disk receptacle portions on a lower surface of the slide tray;
a lock mechanism provided with a rotary stopper, the rotary stopper having at one end thereof a sharp portion capable of being inserted into the engaging groove of the disk tray; and
a motion gear which, when the rotation of the disk tray by the drive unit is stopped at a predetermined rotational position detected by the position sensor, causes the sharp portion of the rotary stopper in the lock mechanism to be inserted into the engaging groove to inhibit the rotation of the disk tray, the motion gear causing the second chucking portion and the pickup in the mechanical holder to rise toward the associated disk receptacle portion, allowing a rotational axis of the disk received therein to be held between the first and second chucking portions.
In the present invention constructed as above, the slide tray is installed so that it can be drawn out from a cabinet body, and the disk tray provided with plural disk receptacle portions on an upper surface thereof has an axis at which it is supported rotatably by a support shaft erected on an upper surface of the slide tray.
One end of a chuck arm, which is provided on an opposite end side thereof with a first chucking portion able to confront each of the disk receptacle portions from above, is mounted to an upper end of the support shaft.
According to this construction, when the rotation of the disk tray by the drive unit is stopped at the predetermined rotational position detected by the position sensor during chucking, the motion gear causes the sharp portion of the rotary stopper to be inserted into the engaging groove, the engaging groove being formed in a lower surface of the disk tray and having wedge-like slant faces radially, thereby inhibiting the rotation of the disk tray.
The motion gear causes the second chucking portion and the pickup carried on the mechanical holder to rise toward any of the disk receptacle portions, allowing a rotating shaft of the disk received therein to be held between the first and second chucking portions.
Thus, according to the present invention, a disk changer able to positively inhibit the rotation of the disk tray can be realized by a concrete construction.
Although the present invention is thus realized as a disk changer having a concrete construction, such a construction is a mere example and hence the technique contemplated by the present invention can be grasped in a wide scope.
More specifically, the present invention may be realized in terms of a disk changer comprising a disk tray of a generally disk shape, the disk tray being able to receive plural disks on a surface thereof and having an engaging groove in a position spaced apart from a rotational axis thereof, the engaging groove having wedge-like slant faces radially, a drive mechanism for rotating the disk tray, and a rotation inhibiting mechanism which causes a sharp portion of an engaging member thereof to be inserted into the engaging groove of the disk tray radially to inhibit the rotation of the disk tray.
In this construction, the drive mechanism rotates the disk tray which can receive plural disks on a surface thereof.
When the rotation of the disk tray is stopped, the rotation inhibiting mechanism causes a sharp portion of its engaging member to be inserted radially into the engaging groove to inhibit the rotation of the disk tray, the engaging groove being formed in the disk tray and having wedge-like slant faces radially in positions spaced apart from a rotational axis of the disk tray.
At this time, in the rotation inhibiting mechanism, slant faces formed on both sides of a tip end of the sharp portion are guided along the slant faces of the engaging groove until reaching the inner part of the engaging groove. Therefore, even if the disk tray stops beyond or before a predetermined rotational position, the sharp portion is inserted into the engaging groove, whereby the rotation of the disk tray is surely inhibited.
In this way it is possible to provide a disk changer which can inhibit the rotation of the disk tray positively.
As a concrete construction example of the engaging grooves as referred to herein there may be adopted a construction wherein the engaging groove is formed wider than the width of the sharp portion of the engaging member in the circumferential direction of the disk tray.
According to this construction, when the sharp portion of the engaging member is inserted into the engaging groove which is formed wider than the width of the sharp portion in the circumferential direction of the disk tray, the engaging groove comes to have slant faces for guiding the sharp portion to the inner part of the engaging groove over a wider range in the circumferential direction of the disk tray.
Consequently even in case of a large deviation of the disk tray stop position from the predetermined rotational position, it becomes possible to let the sharp portion of the engaging member be inserted positively into the engaging groove. Thus improving the shape of the engaging groove permits of a more positive inhibition of the disk tray rotation.
As a construction example for more ensuring the inhibition of the disk tray rotation there may be adopted a construction wherein the engaging groove is formed in the vicinity of a peripheral edge portion of the disk tray.
According to this construction, the sharp portion is inserted into the engaging groove formed near the peripheral edge portion of the disk try and there is performed an engaging motion between the engaging member and the engaging groove.
At this time, the engaging member is engaged with the engaging groove at a position spaced apart radially from the axis of the disk tray, i.e., at a position at which the energy of a rotary motion of the disk tray becomes large. Consequently, it becomes possible to inhibit the rotation of the disk tray in a more positive manner.
Thus forming the engaging groove at an appropriate position permits of a more effective inhibition of the disk tray rotation.
Thus improving the operation timing of the rotation inhibiting mechanism permits of a more effective inhibition of the disk tray rotation.
As an example there may be adopted a construction wherein the sharp portion of the engaging member is formed on one end side of the engaging member and an axis of the engaging member is oriented in the rotational axis direction of the disk tray, the disk tray pivotally supports one end side of a mechanical holder, the mechanical holder having a pickup able to confront each of the disks received on the disk tray, and there is provided a rotary cam, the rotary cam having a first cam groove into which an opposite end side of the engaging member is inserted and which causes the opposite end side of the engaging member to move forward and backward radially of the disk tray and a second cam groove into which an opposite end side of the mechanical holder is inserted and which causes the opposite end side of the mechanical holder to move up and down with respect to a rotational surface of the disk tray, the rotary cam, when rotating in a predetermined direction, causing the opposite end side of the engaging member to be guided and rotated by the first cam groove in a direction in which the sharp portion of the engaging member approaches the engaging groove, while causing the opposite end side of the mechanical holder to be moved by the second cam groove in a direction in which the opposite end side of the mechanical holder approaches the rotational surface of the disk tray.
According to this construction, when the rotary cam rotates in a predetermined direction, the first cam groove guides the opposite end side of the engaging member, thereby causing the engaging member to rotate in the predetermined direction so that the sharp portion of the engaging member approaches the engaging groove and is inserted therein, whereby the rotation of the disk tray is inhibited.
Upon inhibition of the disk tray rotation, the second cam groove makes the opposite end side of the mechanical holder move in a direction in which the opposite end side of the mechanical holder approaches the rotational surface of the disk tray, one end side of the mechanical holder being pivotally supported by the disk tray. Upon this movement, the pickup carried on the mechanical holder confronts the disk, thus making it possible to read data from the disk.
With the disk thus established its position, data can be read from the disk and therefore it becomes possible to effect a more reliable data reading operation.
Thus improving the operation timing of the rotation inhibiting mechanism permits of reading data in a more positive manner.